1. Stretch from 16 Easy Ways to Quickly Boost Your Health

16 Easy Ways to Quickly Boost Your Health

1. Stretch

You don’t have to do yoga if it’s too boring for you. Several quick stretches a day will do the trick. The American College of Sports Medicine says people need to stretch their muscles at least a couple of minutes every week. Stretching helps you stay flexible, increase your motions range, eases tight muscles which are an injury risk. So stretch your arms above your head, move your torso to the side, and don’t forget to stretch the back of your thighs.

2. Go for walks every day

If you are suffering from gym-phobia, don’t despair. Going out for a 30-minute walk every day will suffice. Keeping your body moving is what’s important, not so much where or how. Short walks every day, a study says, can slow down your physiological age by several years. Another research suggests that these half-hour walks can add seven years to your life. Federal guidelines for adults recommend at least 2.5 hours of walking (at the very least)a week.

3. Turn off phones and laptops

Cell phones and laptops and all kinds of other electronics are the No. 1 enemy of staying active. If you don’t keep moving, you have no energy and can’t sleep well. It’s a lot more serious than you think. Staring at a screen before bed reduces the levels of melatonin, a hormone that should increase at night to help you fall asleep. As a result, you take forever to finally get sleepy, your restorative REM sleep is much shorter and you feel a lot tired in the mornings. The rest is a chain reaction.

4. Sniff lemons or limes

Feeling stressed? Grab a lemon and sniff it. A Japanese study suggests that the linalool find in this citrus fruits can help to lower people’s natural flight-or-fight instinct, which lower stress. The substance reduced the inflammatory chemicals in the blood. If you don’t those these two in hand, go to the kitchen and smell the basil.

5. Get a pet

Dogs can be a lot more than your children’s favorite member of the family. They can literally increase your life span, according to several reviews. The explanation is simple: They keep you active because you have to walk them and play with them, which in return, helps prevent heart disease and chronic conditions. Dogs also help their owners relieve stress.

6. Don’t count or cut calories

This is not an excuse to eat junk food every day. The truth is that your body needs a certain amount of calories every day. Providing fewer than that puts it in a stressful situation – because the body is very smart – to which it feels it has to respond by storing fat (to conserve energy) because it has learned it won’t get enough during the day. So don’t cut your calories intake. Rather, get them from complex carbs and proteins. Your body will thank you by giving you what you want – losing weight and staying healthy and fit.

7. Volunteer

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Helping others makes people feel happier, purposeful and self-confident, according to a York University study that included more than 700 people. Some were asked to be compassionate towards someone for 5-15 minutes a day. About six months later, they reported to be in a much better mood than those were not help helpful. The ultimate reason may be selfish but so what – it really comes down to helping others makes us feel better about ourselves.

8. Join a sports team

This is another way of saying “exercise more.” Working out doesn’t have to be a boring and lonesome journey. Joining a team practicing any sport will help make sure you are not cheating by staying home watching TV when you should be moving your body, protecting yourself from all kinds of potential illnesses. Setting a schedule and promising teammates who are counting on you to help the team will surely keep you accountable. Bonus: You can burn more than 600 calories playing soccer for an hour.

9. Cuddle

Hugging and cuddling doesn’t just boost your mood. Comforting physical contact releases oxytocin, a hormone that tells the brain you are safe, which as a result lets you relax. Oxytocin also helps boost the production of natural chemicals in your body that fight infection. A study found the cuddling can even help against the common cold.

10. Drink less alcohol

This may be an obvious one but it’s worth repeating. Drinking more than suggested by health experts increases the risk of cancer, heart conditions and strokes. According to the CDC, excessive drinking led to approximately 88,000 deaths each year in the U.S. alone between 2006 and 2010, shortening the lives of those who died by an average of 30 years. A lot of alcohol in you system over a long period of time affects how your body absorbs calcium and deters enzymes in the liver from functioning properly.

11. Stress a little bit

A little bit of stress appears to be healthy because it enhances people’s overall cognitive function. For example, planning a party can be very nerve-wracking, but once you’ve done it, you can be sure you’ve improved your problem-solving skills and learned valuable management lessons. Short-term stress – in moderate levels – reduces the risk of cancer. Stress becomes a problem when it’s reoccurring constantly and is not managed the right way.

12. Have a smoothie every morning

Make yourself a smoothie with real fruits and vegetables. Add some protein powder if you’d like. You get the same amount of fiber, vitamins and minerals as if you were consuming them raw. But chances are you’re not going to eat three carrots a day unless you blend them in a quick smoothie. They are ideal for super busy people.

13. Make mistakes

Good health includes good memory. Making mistakes every once in a while can only help, according to a study by the University of Toronto. It found that both men and women remembered the correct answers to questions much better if they got it wrong before. Memory improved when people made educated guesses and not when they randomly guessed the answer.

14. Treat your skin with honey

It may get sticky but it’s for the best. Honey draws moisture from the air right into your skin and it keeps it hydrated for a long time. So spread some raw honey on your skin, after you’ve washed and dried it, and wait for about 15 minutes. Then simply rinse. Your pores will be clear and cleaner. Hone has anti-bacterial substances that prevent the skin from breaking out or storing bacteria.

15. Snack on nuts

Enjoy cashews, walnuts and almonds every day. Sprinkle them on you salad or yogurt for some extra taste. You don’t need to consume a lot of nuts to get the recommended daily dose of proteins, vitamins and heart-healthy fats. Nuts are rich in antioxidants which lowers the risk of heart problems.

16. Cut back on the salt

It is well known that consuming too much sodium increase the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart problems. Too much salt kills the calcium in your body which can lead to bone fractures. The recommended daily sodium intake for adults is 2,300 mg – less than one teaspoon. Check the label of whatever you eat during the day and you’ll find that you’re most likely consuming more than that. Remove read-made sauces and processed foods form your diet as much as possible.